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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: pound · bass · tear · bark · fall · safe · net · stem

  1. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. tear — to rip
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. bass — low music
  5. fall — the season
  6. net — for catching
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. bark — to shout
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. net — after costs
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. fall — to drop
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. bass — the fish
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. tear — from crying
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. net — in sport
  21. fall — to drop
  22. stem — to come from
  23. tear — from crying
  24. stem — a stem cell

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com